“I’ll do my best, but you just make sure you don’t put this woman in a tough position.”
“Trust me, Dad, I’m doing everything I can to keep her from getting caught up in a mess. And my mother and sister showing up won’t help this die down, so if Mom does manage to find her passport, do me a favor and hide it again? Along with Cassie’s?”
“I’ll do my best. Now talk to me about your shoulder. Any problems?”
While giving his dad an update that was pretty positive, Will pulled his iPad off its charger and opened the mail app tied to the email he only used with his professional contacts. There were already several emails from the PR office, as well as a few names that made him wince. Pretty much everybody wanted answers, from the top office down.
And he’d answer them at some point, but he read his contracts pretty closely before he signed them and there were no clauses giving the Harriers an opinion on who he dated.
“I found it,” Will heard his mother say over his father asking about the Skimmers’ practice facility, and both men groaned. “Let me talk to him for a minute, Jack.”
It took a solid five minutes for Will to convince his mom there was nothing going on that merited her getting on a plane to the US. Then he capped off the conversation by asking about his four-year-old nephew. Talking about her grandson was always the perfect distraction.
Once the call ended, he plugged his phone in to charge and sat at the desk with the iPad. After responding to the emails from PR—making it very clear he didn’t want to hear anything but “no comment” from the Harriers or Skimmers—he sent an email to his social media manager. There was going to be a flood of ugliness, and they were going to ignore it, as usual. But attacks on Kristen wouldn’t be tolerated, and those comments should be deleted on platforms that allowed it and the accounts blocked whenever possible. He’d been in the sports corner of the internet long enough to know it wouldn’t be pretty, and not only were they trying not to antagonize Kristen’s boss, but it would be best for everybody if Will didn’t read any comments for a while. He couldn’t fight everybody.
With that task out of the way, he killed twenty minutes putting away the clothes the laundry service had delivered and making a list of things he was running short on in the kitchenette. Once he knew Mitchell and the rest of the team would be back on the ice, he called his friend’s number and left a voicemail, giving him the same story he’d given his parents. Casually seeing each other. Miscommunication with Burke. Nothing to see here.
Best case scenario, they’d play phone tag for a few days, until it all died down.
But when he finally went to the Hometown Hoser site to see for himself, he knew it might take more than a few days for it to fade away. Joel had really missed his calling writing tabloid trash because while he didn’t technically change the facts, he made the scandal sound a hell of a lot juicier than it actually was. And a quick Google search told him other sites were picking up the story and running with it. He didn’t even bother checking Facebook or Twitter, since it wouldn’t do anything but jack up his blood pressure and make it harder to stick to the strict no-comment strategy.
All he could do was hope being Erik Burke’s sister would shield Kristen from the more disgusting comments, and that hockey fandom would focus more on the punch in the face than the reason for it.
And that Kristen’s conversations with her brother and father didn’t blow everything up. He’d wanted to be with her, but she’d made it clear his presence wasn’t going to help, so he put on a movie and did his best not to think about it.
Kristen decided on drinks at her place rather than meeting her brother in a restaurant or bar for the conversation ahead of them. Not that Erik would cause an unpleasant scene, but because at least one person in any public space tended to recognize him, and she was going to be talking about her sex life.
She’d also refused Will’s offer to be present when she explained the situation to Erik, for obvious reasons. They weren’t even twenty-four hours from Erik punching Will in the face and that was before the situation went publicly sideways. She could reason with her brother, but not if the two men were facing off in some kind of dick-swinging contest.
Erik not only sent her a text message when he arrived at her building, but he knocked on the door and waited for her to let him in. He was still tense, and his mouth was pressed into a tight line, but at least he’d gotten that message.
“Have a seat,” she said, gesturing to the two fresh drinks she’d set on the coffee table when she got his text.
He sat in the armchair, as always, but he didn’t reach for the glass. “What’s going on, Kris? I’ve been dodging Joel from Hometown Hoser and a couple other guys since that post about you and Lecroix being a couple went live.”
“That’s a stupid name for a site, even if it is about hockey, and what’s going on is Will getting ambushed with questions he couldn’t get around answering.” Somehow that information had come from her brother, which she couldn’t forget. When he looked confused, she sighed. “Will is his actual name, you know. His mother didn’t name him Cross.”
“Oh, yeah. I think I knew that. But the last time we had dinner, you told me you weren’t dating anybody. Did you really think you could hide this from me?” When he looked her in the eye, it wasn’t anger she saw there. Her brother was hurt, and her face flushed with guilt. “How can you be in a relationship with this guy and not tell me?”
If he’d raged at her, she probably would have stuck to her original plan, which was to lie to him and to let him continue believing what Will had said was the truth. But when everything else was stripped away—the hockey and the resentments and their relationships with their father—Erik was her brother and believing that she’d been seeing Will behind his back would hurt him.
“We don’t have a relationship, Erik.”
“You sure as hell have something.”
“I picked him up in a bar. I didn’t know who he was, but I watched him for a while and then I brought him home with me. That was supposed to be the end of it.”
His brows drew together, and he shook his head. “Then why the hell did he tell that reporter you’ve been dating?”
“Because somebody ran their mouth about last night. It wasn’t me and it wasn’t Will, so…” She let the accusation go unsaid, one eyebrow arched.
“I went out with a couple of the guys after. Had a few drinks.” He sighed and leaned back in his chair. “I was pissed, so I might have said some shit.”
“Yeah, and one of those guys you went out with told somebody else who thought it would be a cool story for the sports page.” She felt herself getting heated and forced herself to calm down. “Or you were talking loud enough that somebody else overheard you.”
“I’m sorry, Kris. I’m going to find out if it was one of the guys I was with because they were Marauders, and if one of them ran his mouth about you…I’ll find out, I promise.”
“Will had a split second to consider the fact the real story could cost me my promotion. That me picking up your biggest rival in a bar for a one-night stand could be a juicy enough story that the mainstream media might pick it up.”
“And you guys dating won’t be a story?” He leaned forward and picked up his drink, downing half of it in one shot. Hers was almost empty, so she didn’t blame him a bit.
She inhaled slowly through her nose before the blowing the breath out through her mouth. She wasn’t sure she’d be able to make him understand. “It’s a story no matter what. But one version paints a picture of a woman falling for her brother’s professional opponent in some kind of star-crossed romance or some shit. The other version stars a woman looking for a one-night stand in a bar. You know how people get—how guys like my boss get—when it comes to women who just want to get laid.”
“I…shit.”
Kristen chuckled softly. “You’re trying so hard not to put your hands over your ears and sing la la la, I can’t hear you right now.”
“I do not want to talk about your sex life.”
“Trust me, I don’t want to be talking about it, either. But you not only punched Will in the face, you then ranted about it to your buddies. I don’t know if it was one of them or just some asshole within earshot, but somebody put my personal business on blast, and here we are.”
“So it was just a one-night stand?”
“It was probably going to be a few nights, actually.” When he groaned, she laughed. “I’ll spare you the details, but you know how I feel about the sport. You really think, after all this time being a hockey sister, I’d sign on to be a hockey wife?”
“I’m sorry I might blow up your promotion, Kris. I really am. But what am I supposed to do now? Smile and tell the world I’m thrilled my sister is dating Cross Lecroix?”
“You can’t even bluff your way through a round of poker, so there’s no way you’d pull that off. You don’t have to give us your blessing or anything. Just tell anybody who asks that my personal life is my business and you wish me the best.”
“They’ll still talk. Your boss will probably still hear some of it.” When she opened her mouth to respond, he held up his hand. “No, I get it. As long as your boss thinks you’re in a proper courtship or whatever, he won’t have a problem with it.”
“I’m not sure he’ll approve of a professional hockey player, but yeah. Basically, that’s the situation. You owe me this, Erik. I’ve lived in your shadow my entire life, and now I have a chance to take a big step forward in my career. If you don’t go along with this, I could lose my promotion.”
“I’m going to do whatever you need to do, but I still think he’s using you to hurt me.”
Her temper rose, and she clenched her hands into fists. “This isn’t about you. I told you last night that, contrary to our father’s opinion, not everything is. Will didn’t know I was your sister when we hooked up.”
“So he says.” Concern for her softened the hard lines of his face. “I mean, what are the chances?”
Kristen remembered the look on Will’s face when he realized he was naked in the bed of Erik Burke’s sister. It had been nothing short of horror, and there was a good chance Erik would never believe it was a weird coincidence in a small world, but she did.
“Believe whatever you want,” she said rather than waste time trying to convince him. “I don’t care. The only thing I care about is you swearing to me that you won’t contradict what Will told the press to anybody. Even Dad.”
“You want me to lie to Dad?”
Erik was a lot closer to Lamont than Kristen was. It was just the natural order of things in the Burke family, and she’d accepted it years ago. But she also knew Erik loved her, and if she could get him to make this promise to her, he wouldn’t break it. Not even for their father.
“Let me ask you this,” she said, leaning back in her chair. “Which do you think is more important to Dad—my career and promotion or denying anybody in the Burke family could ever be involved in any way with Cross Lecroix?”
“He’d throw you under the bus if it got him sports media time,” he admitted with obvious reluctance. “I’m sorry, because even though you and I both know it’s true, I hate saying it out loud.”
“I know, but it is what it is, so I need you to promise you won’t tell anybody the actual truth about me and Will. Please.”
“I’ll do it. I won’t even tell Dad.” She kept looking at him until he chuckled. “I promise.”
“Thank you.”
“Have you heard from him yet? I was expecting him to blow up my phone, but he doesn’t like to distract me from ice time, so it should be coming anytime now.”
She rolled her eyes. “I haven’t spoken to him, but I got a text message demanding I be available for a phone call at six o’clock.”
Erik tapped his phone screen to see the time and then grinned. “Oh, look at the time. I just remembered I have a thing I’m supposed to be doing in five minutes.”
“Chicken,” she teased, and she got up to put their empty glasses in the sink while he put his coat on.
“I’m sorry about all this,” he said sincerely, wrapping his arms around her for a brief hug. “I lost my shit when I saw him in your bedroom, but the rest of it…I would never do anything to hurt you, Kris. I’m really sorry.”
“I know. This’ll pass and eventually it’ll just be a funny hey, remember that one time story we tell when Dad isn’t around.”
He laughed and kissed her cheek. “I’d tell you to let me know how the conversation with Dad goes, but I’m pretty sure I’ll hear all about it.”
“No doubt.”
He paused in the doorway. “None of that apology is for Cross, though. Just to be clear. I’m not sorry I got that shot in at all.”
“I figured as much.” The shrill sound of her phone’s ringer echoed through the apartment, and she cringed.
“Hey, gotta go,” Erik said, and then he fled, pulling the door closed behind him.
When she picked up the phone and saw Dad on the screen, she thought about sending him to voicemail. She wasn’t in the mood for Lamont Burke tonight. But he’d warned her this call was coming and dodging it would escalate things. He might even show up at her door. “Hello?”
“What the hell are you thinking?”
“Hi, Pop. How are you? I’m fine, thanks.” Not that this call was any different from his calls in the past. Since most of his communications revolved around her brother, he often forgot to make even a token effort to show an interest in her life.
“Don’t give me your attitude today, when you’re making a mess of your brother’s career.”
She wanted to laugh out loud at her dad’s melodrama, but he had limits and her being amused by this situation would definitely go too far. He didn’t have a sense of humor when it came to hockey. “Erik’s career seems to be just fine.”
“It won’t be if he’s focusing on you and this stunt you’re pulling instead of on his game.”
Kristen closed her eyes, pinching the bride of her nose. She was tired of it—tired of him—and just really tired in general. She should have let him rant to her voicemail box until the system cut him off.
It was too late for that, though, so she took a deep breath and decided to once again try to placate him instead of telling him to mind his own damn business. He considered everything even tangentially related to Erik his business, so she’d end up backed into a corner where her only option was to tell him to fuck off. She wasn’t ready to do that yet.
Maybe she wouldn’t ever be. Every time the words formed in her brain, begging to be unleashed, she thought about the fact that cutting her father out of her life permanently would mean having no parents at all. She’d lost her mother, but as long as she accepted Lamont was the way he was, she still had her dad. And turning her back on her dad would put a strain on her relationship with Erik. Not that it would come between them—nothing would ever do that—but it would make seeing each other a lot harder.
So she never said the words, even when he was being like this. And she wouldn’t say them now. “I’m not pulling a stunt, Pop, and Erik and I have discussed this already.”
“And did it ever occur to you that you should discuss it with me?”
She snorted in disbelief before her filter could catch up. Talk about her sex life with her father? Not likely. She’d had to ask a neighbor lady to help her make her first gynecological appointment because the grown man in the house had literally put his hands over his ears and shouted for her to stop talking to him about that inappropriate shit.
It was the last time she’d ever attempted to talk to him about anything even tangentially related to her vagina.
“Are you acting out?” he demanded. “You’re jealous of the attention your brother gets, so you’re going to embarrass him like this?”
Kristen pulled the phone away from her ear, and her thumb hovered over the red circle that would end the call. It wouldn’t be as satisfying as throwing the phone a
gainst the wall, but she knew she’d regret that kind of outburst later when she didn’t have a cell phone and had to jump through the hoops to get a replacement.
Lamont was a toxic cloud in her life. She knew it, but as long as his cloud wasn’t actively blocking her sunshine, she rolled with it. Better a dad who was kind of an asshole than no dad, she guessed. But every once in a while, that cloud would drop down like a toxic funnel cloud and batter her emotional shutters.
But he had a tendency to get pretty ugly when she hung up on him and, while she wasn’t afraid of him, she didn’t feel like a pissed off Lamont Burke talking to the press was going to do any of them any favors.
“This has nothing to do with Erik,” she said calmly. “I met a guy, and we hit it off. His name is Will, and it turns out they call him Cross professionally, but I didn’t know that at the time.”
“How long has this been going on?”
Okay, that was a problem. If they were going to lie to everybody, they probably should have spent a few minutes on their cover story. The when they met and how they met details would probably trip them up.
“A while,” she said, opting against specifics. And then, knowing her dad in a temper would follow the bouncing rage ball, she turned the conversation away from the details she didn’t have. “He’s a really great guy, Dad.”
It sounded as if he choked on something—maybe his beloved bourbon—and she winced. Having to call an ambulance for her dad because her so-called relationship with Will almost killed him would do the opposite of making the story boring.
“He’s an asshole,” Lamont barked, and Kristen was relieved. If he could bark, he could breathe. Actually, with him it was more like, if he was breathing, he was barking.
“But just imagine what amazing hockey players our sons would be,” she snapped, even though the idea of her having kids any time soon, especially with a hockey player she accidentally picked up in a bar, was ridiculous.
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